Ukrainian tank crews have returned home following being trained to operate the Challenger 2 tanks in the UK, the UK Ministry of Defense said. As writes The Guardianit is assumed that these military will be involved in the spring counter-offensive.
The training included instructions on command, control and teamwork as part of the crew, as well as on effective identification and engagement of targets.
The UK became the first country to announce the supply of Western-made tanks to Ukraine in early 2023. For London, similar decisions were made by Washington and Berlin, the FRG also allowed the re-export of German-made tanks from other countries. The UK initially planned to send 14 tanks, however, according to Ukrainian Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko, as a result of Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit, it was decided to increase this number to 28.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that the number of tanks in the Russian army will be three times higher than the number of tanks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, even taking into account Western supplies. Western countries plan to supply Kyiv with 400 tanks, during which time Russia plans to produce 1,600 new tanks.
